The Reset: Softball teams head to regionals; Hornets baseball continues run

The Oak Mountain softball team won two games on Wednesday, May 1, 2019, to qualify for the West Central Regional Tournament.

Over the course of the year, 280 Living will keep you up to date on the various local high school athletic teams. For previous weekly updates, click here.

BASEBALL

Briarwood

The Briarwood baseball team and Chilton County are headed to a decisive third game in the Class 5A playoffs. A pitching masterpiece in Game 1 was followed with an offensive onslaught in Game 2 on Friday at Jay D. Kynerd Field.

Game 3 was originally slated for Saturday afternoon, but weather pushed the game back and will be played Monday night at 6 p.m. The series winner will face the winner of the Sylacauga-Bibb County series next week in the Class 5A semifinals.

Game 1: Chilton County 2, Briarwood 0

Chilton County scored two runs in the top of the seventh to beat Briarwood 2-0 on Friday night.

Pico Kohn earned the win for Chilton County. He surrendered no runs on four hits over 6 2/3 innings. Jaylon Gilley earned the save. Andrew Ponder took the loss for Briarwood. He pitched six innings, allowing four hits and two runs while striking out nine and walking none.

Kohn went 2-for-3 at the plate to lead Chilton County. He knocked in both seventh-inning runs. Carson McKinney led Briarwood with two hits.

Game 2: Briarwood 13, Chilton County 1

Briarwood found its offense, and plenty of it, in the second game of the night, blasting Chilton County 13-1.

The Lions (16-14) scored all 13 of its runs in the first four innings of a shortened game. Wesley Helms and Bryce Perrien each collected three hits. Helms drove in three runs and scored two. Parker Hutson drove in two runs and scored three. Also with RBIs were Carson McKinney, Eli Steadman, and Christian Ferguson.

McKinney got the win, allowing one unearned run on three hits across five innings. He struck out five.

- Gary Lloyd

Chelsea

The Chelsea baseball team continued its impressive run, knocking off the top-ranked team in Class 6A, according to the Alabama Sports Writers Association, in a three-game quarterfinal series.

Chelsea will host Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa this weekend in the semifinals.

Game 1: Russell County 8, Chelsea 7

Chelsea was unable to hang onto its early lead and fell to Russell County 8-7 in eight innings in the first game on Thursday afternoon. The Hornets jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the top of the second inning, but Russell County immediately responded with four runs in the bottom and eventually tied the game in the bottom of the seventh. Chelsea went back ahead with a run in the eighth before a hit by pitch and walk with the bases loaded forced in the tying and winning runs for Russell County.

Carter Frederick’s solo homer in the top of the eighth gave Chelsea its brief lead back, and he had three runs batted in total in the contest. His two-run single in the second capped off a five-run frame. Bennett Horton had a sacrifice fly in the first inning and a two-run single in the second inning.

Game 2: Chelsea 12, Russell County 6

Not fazed by the end of the first game of the series, Chelsea took control early and rode the momentum to a 12-6 victory over Russell County to even the series at a game apiece. The Hornets’ bats exploded in the second inning, putting 10 runs across.

Frederick, the losing pitcher in the first game, had a two-run homer in the big second inning and drove in the team’s other two runs on a double in the fifth inning. Nolan Forehand cleared the bases on a hit in the second to bring home three runs. Adam Reaves tripled and had two run-scoring singles in the contest as well. Brock Hill went the first five innings on the mound for the Hornets, with all six of the runs he allowed going down as unearned. Jacob Tinnell finished the game with two scoreless innings of work.

Game 3: Chelsea 6, Russell County 3

Chelsea never trailed in the decisive third game of the series and defeated Russell County 6-3 on Friday afternoon in a winner-take-all game, lifting the Hornets to the semifinals.

Both teams started hot, posting three runs on the board in the first inning. The Hornets got their three early runs on a Frederick three-run homer, while Russell County got the benefit of three hits and a walk. Horton’s groundout in the second gave Chelsea a 4-3 lead, Austin Frye had an RBI single in the third and Horton hit a sacrifice fly in the sixth to give the Hornets some insurance.

Chelsea got a remarkable effort on the mound from Reid Gongwer, who settled in after the first inning and shut Russell County down the rest of the way. He allowed just two hits over the final six innings and completed the seven innings in just 90 pitches.

SOFTBALL

Briarwood

The Briarwood softball team played in the Class 5A, Area 8 tournament, hosted by John Carroll, last week to begin postseason play. The Lions pulled out a thrilling 6-5 victory in their opening round game against Ramsay on Wednesday. The Lions trailed 5-1 entering the final inning before scoring five runs to walk off winners when Taylor Wheat scored on a passed ball. In the game, Caroline Campbell had a big impact, going 3-for-4 with three RBIs at the plate while alos striking out 14 batters in seven innings in the circle. Leadoff hitter Jaddin Glenn drove in two runs as well.

Briarwood lost the second game of the day, a 4-1 defeat to John Carroll. Campbell knocked in the lone run and only one of Cameron Fountain’s four runs allowed in the fourth inning was earned.

Briarwood came back on Thursday to seal its berth in the regional tournament this week. The Lions dominated Ramsay 16-5 in five innings. Cameron Fountain led the way offensively, as she went 2-for-4 with three RBIs. Sydnee Shirley drove in three runs, while Blakley Watts went 3-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored as well. The Lions fell 10-4 to John Carroll in the area championship game later on Thursday.

Briarwood will begin play in the East Central Regional Tournament at Choccolocco Park in Oxford on Friday at noon.

Chelsea

The Chelsea softball team began postseason play last week with the Class 6A, Area 8 tournament. In the opening round on Tuesday, the Hornets fell to Pelham 6-0. The loss sent Chelsea to the losers’ bracket, but the Hornets rebounded with a 15-0 victory the same day over Calera to stave off elimination. Lexi Serio led the offense, as she went 3-for-3 with a home run and three runs batted in. Chloe Eidson, Olivia Bergert, Abigail Bryars and Carly Taylor each drove in two runs apiece as well. Bryars did not allow a hit in three innings of work in the circle.

Chelsea came back on Thursday and clinched its berth at the regional tournament this week with a 3-0 victory over Pelham. In the win, Lexi Serio hit a two-run homer to break a scoreless tie in the fourth inning and Bryars allowed just four hits in seven innings of shutout ball.

In the area championship game, Helena knocked off the Hornets 11-8, with Helena’s six-run fifth inning proving to be the difference. Camryn Smith, Bergert and Taylor all knocked in two runs apiece.

Chelsea will begin play in the East Central Regional Tournament at Choccolocco Park in Oxford on Thursday at noon.

Oak Mountain

The Oak Mountain softball team began play in the Class 7A, Area 5 tournament last week, dropping a 9-5 decision to Tuscaloosa County in the opening round on Tuesday. The Eagles jumped out to a 5-0 lead on the strength of a three-run double from Grace Hummel and a two-run Abi Brown home run, but they were unable to hang onto the lead.

Oak Mountain came back on Wednesday and won a pair of contrasting one-run games to clinch a berth at the regional tournament next week. The Eagles pulled out a wild 17-16 victory over Hoover to begin the day. They jumped out to a 10-2 lead in the third inning before allowing seven unanswered runs.

Oak Mountain extended its lead back to 16-9 with six runs in the fifth inning, but Hoover continued to fight back and even tied the game in the seventh inning on a two-run home run. In the top of the eighth inning, Hannah Atwood’s bunt scored a run and gave the Eagles the lead for good.

In the game, M’Kiyah Mitchell homered and drove in five runs, while Brown was 4-for-5 with a homer and four RBIs. Riley Sullivan drove in two runs.

The following elimination game looked completely different, but Oak Mountain pulled out a 3-2 win over Tuscaloosa County to earn the regional spot. In the sixth inning, Clara Fuller’s base hit scored a run and lifted the Eagles to victory.

In the area championship game, Thompson knocked off Oak Mountain 8-1. The Eagles earned their run on an Atwood homer.

Oak Mountain will begin play in the West Central Regional Tournament at Bowers Park in Tuscaloosa on Thursday at 9 a.m.

GOLF

The Briarwood boys golf team won the Class 5A, Section 3 tournament last week, posting a team score of 317. The score was equal to Sylacauga’s, but the Lions took the crown by winning in a playoff. The win sends the Lions to the sub-state tournament this week. Andrew McCary took home low-medalist honors as well. On the girls side, Annamarie Thompson advanced to sub-state as an individual.

Briarwood’s boys team will play in the sub-state tournament on Tuesday at Heron Lakes Country Club.

The Briarwood boys soccer team (19-1-3) advanced to the Class 4A-5A state final four this past week. The Lions defeated John Carroll 2-1 on Tuesday in the second round of the playoffs and Sylacauga 8-0 on Friday in the state quarterfinals. The Lions will face Montgomery Academy this Thursday in the state semifinals. Kickoff is at 5:30 p.m. at John Hunt Park in Huntsville.

The Briarwood girls fell to John Carroll 2-0 on Tuesday in the second round of the 4A-5A state playoffs and finished the season 6-11-1.

Chelsea

The Chelsea girls soccer team (20-2-1) advanced to the 6A state final four last week. The Lady Hornets defeated Northridge 2-0 in the second round of the playoffs on Tuesday and Opelika 9-0 in the state quarterfinals on Thursday. Chelsea will face St. Paul’s this Friday in the state semifinals. Kickoff is at 9 a.m. at John Hunt Park in Huntsville.

The Chelsea boys soccer team fell to Pelham 1-0 in overtime in the second round of the 6A state playoffs. The Hornets finished the season 14-11.

Oak Mountain

The Vestavia Hills girls soccer team advanced to the 7A state final four in Huntsville with a thrilling 1-0 victory over rival Oak Mountain in double overtime on Saturday evening.

Neither team broke through until Caroline Causey’s left-footed shot from 30 yards away found its way into the back of the net in the second five-minute overtime period, ending the game.

“We had opportunities, but we just couldn’t finish,” Vestavia Hills head coach Brigid Meadow said. “That’s probably the toughest game we’ve played all year.”

The Rebels would have been staked to an early lead without the play of Oak Mountain goalkeeper Olivia Schou. Shortly after a 30-minute delay due to lightning in the area, Schou stopped a Causey penalty 15 minutes into the contest. A short time later, Schou rushed out on Vestavia’s Izzy Passman, who had a step on her defender, and knocked the ball out of harm’s way.

Oak Mountain had a limited number of chances on goal as well, most of them coming after the arrival of star player Nicole Payne. After winning three state championships at the state outdoor track and field meet in Gulf Shores early in the day on Saturday, Payne immediately left the meet and arrived at the soccer game during the lightning delay, which halted play at the 26:43 mark of the first half.

Vestavia Hills improved to 21-0 with the win and will face James Clemens on Friday at 1 p.m. at John Hunt Park in the state semifinals. Oak Mountain finished the season with a record of 18-3-1, with two of their three losses coming to the Rebels. The Eagles earned their date with Vestavia Hills by defeating Spain Park 2-1 in the first round of the playoffs last Tuesday.

The Oak Mountain boys soccer team (17-8-1) fell to Hoover 2-0 on Friday in the 7A state quarterfinals. The Eagles advanced to the quarterfinal round by beating Vestavia Hills 2-1 on Monday. Patrick Guffey scored both of his team’s goals in the win.

TRACK AND FIELD

Oak Mountain’s Nicole Payne dominated at the 7A state outdoor track and field meet last week in Gulf Shores. Read about the meet here.

— What else would you like to see mentioned? For any suggestions, feel free to email sports editor Kyle Parmley at kparmley@starnespublishing.com.